Autumn Greetings!

Harleigh has been begging me to put up our Fall decorations. Not that we have a lot of them, but she has been feeling festive since the leaves began to change colors on the trees. We put up a couple of things this weekend and then I told her I would get out the box on Tuesday while Todd and the boys were at the church. Tonight she didn't forget! After I got home from work she reminded me we were putting up the decorations. So I told her once dinner and the dishes were finished but then I got a phone call about the time we were going to put them up and she made me this note!

Now for a First Grader who is sounding out all of her words DACERASHN translates to DECORATION. The red face and frowny face translate to Harleigh is upset and you better get off the phone Mom. I hurried my phone call and we finished putting up our decorations outside and then came inside.

I'm glad that she enjoys putting up decorations and enjoying the seasons. The weather has been so nice and the leaves on the trees are so pretty right now. Soon enough we'll be shoveling snow so for now I'll just get ready to enjoy raking leaves, which she reminded me is SO FUN to jump in the middle of a pile of leaves!!

So from Harleigh and me Autumn Greetings!

She Came! She Came!

I don't know what it is with our family and teeth lately?! GEESH! Actually I know what part of it is, I finally was able to pay off the dentist bill. I seriously think that as soon as I put it in the mail my crown started to come loose! Three hours in the dentist chair later.... Then of course there was Harleigh's trauma with the tooth fairy. And now, after school last night, Jayce started to complain that his tooth was really hurting. He had a cavity in a baby tooth a long time ago and the dentist had put a cap on it. I guess that the permanent tooth was trying to come through and the root on the baby tooth just wouldn't let it. Anyhow after an after hour visit to the dentist, $$$$, he pulled Jayce's tooth. Well Harleigh was keeping an eye on the situation. She made sure that Jayce put his tooth, ucky yucky root and all tooth, where the tooth fairy could find it. This morning she checked on it bright and early and LUCKILY the tooth fairy had remembered YEAH! I don't think that Jayce appreciated her screaming SHE CAME! SHE CAME! and waking him up after the codeine that the dentist had given him had made him sick during the night and he, and me, didn't get much sleep. Brodie tried to convince her that Jayce just wanted to sleep but Harleigh was sure he would want to know that SHE CAME! SHE CAME!

What? No Pictures??

Yesterday was Harleigh's day for Show and Tell. Because of our trauma on Friday with the tooth fairy, her Dad had been trying to cheer her up that morning. He told her that he thought he could bring the garbage truck that he drives to Show and Tell. Since there is nothing better in a young child's eyes than the garbage truck, Harleigh couldn't wait to tell her teacher and they made arrangements.

I was all set to head over at the designated time and take pictures but when I called Todd to make sure he had gotten a hold of Mrs. Ricks he said he had just finished with the Show and Tell. WHAT? NO PICTURES?? Okay, I admit maybe this blog thing is making me a little obsessive with the pictures, but hey I thought it would be fun to get pictures!!

I guess it was a hit and all of the kids thought it was cool to sit in the garbage truck and watch the monitor and see how everything operates. So even without me and my camera and pictures, it was a pretty cool Show and Tell.

It is so funny because Todd can seem like such a grumpy guy but here are little kids all over town who get up early and wait for him to come by in the garbage truck. He gets fan mail occasionally with pictures that the kids have drawn for him. It is pretty cute.

Harleigh's Terrible Tooth Fairy Tale

I picked Harleigh up from the babysitter on Thursday. She was so excited she had lost ANOTHER tooth. That's a total of seven now. Soon she's going to be back to baby food because she's not going to have any teeth to eat with.

She was so excited about loosing this tooth because now that she has started the First Grade her teacher, Mrs. Ricks, has a chart that they can put their name on. She couldn't wait for the tooth fairy to come and then to go to school and put her name on the chart. She even went to bed early.

The next morning I heard her crying hysterically in her bedroom and I KNEW what had happened. That DARN tooth fairy had forgotten to come! GREAT!!! I tried to console her but there was just no consoling her, she was SO upset. She said that if the tooth fairy was not going to come then she wasn't going to loose any more teeth.

Luckily I remembered that Todd had once called the tooth fairy when she had forgotten one of Brodie's teeth. So we called Dad to the rescue. He was able to get a hold of the tooth fairy and came home to explain to Harleigh that a lot of kids had lost their teeth Thursday and she wasn't able to make it to everyone's house. She apologized. She told Todd that if Harleigh was a good girl and went to school she would try to visit while she was at school and bring her money and a surprise. Well much to my surprise, the surprise that the tooth fairy got for Harleigh was scratch tickets, but hey Harleigh was THRILLED! When I got home she was busily scratching them to see if she won. Good thing the tooth fairy picked a surprise that Harleigh's Dad likes too.

She got $1.00 from the tooth fairy and won another $1.00 from the scratch tickets. DARN that tooth fairy any way. Good thing that Dad saved the day!!

Which Princess Am I?

I saw this quiz on another blog and decided I'd see which princess I am. Here's the result.

You Are Ariel!

Headstrong and fiesty. You have a mind of your own that's full of romantic dreams about the world around you. Exploring exotic places is your ultimate dream, and although you can be a little naive you'll realize that there is something to be gained from your family's wisdom.

Which Disney Princess Are You?

Headstrong and fiesty?? What are they talking about?? I want a recount on that result!!

Husband Tagged

I got "husband tagged" by Michelle.

I mostly talk about our children so this is good for me to focus on Todd for one of my posts.

1. How did you first meet? At a Madison/South Fremont High School basketball game. That was back in the day that Madison and South Fremont were rivals! I went to Madison and Todd went to South Fremont. Madison won by the way!!


2. How long did you date before you got married? A VERY long time! We met my sophomore year and he dated my best friend for a year. When they broke up Todd and I stayed friends. We then started dating my senior year. He went in the Air Force and we had a long distance "Ma Bell" type relationship for four years until he came home and we were engaged for four months and then married. Oh what I would have given for cell phones and calling cards back then. Our mothers HATED our phone bills! All in all probably five years. We met in 1983 and were married in 1989. WOW, that is a LONG time ago!!


3. How long have you been married? 19 years. 20 years in May.


4. What does he do that surprises you? His gifts. He can make me think he has totally forgotten me on my birthday, Christmas, and anniversaries and then gives me something that he has really thought out and is meaningful! The year Harleigh was born I had always wanted a gliding rocker. Christmas Eve one was delivered to the house. I was SO excited. But then he really surprised me the next morning when he gave me a Shirley print of the Idaho Falls Temple with the date that we were sealed as a family on it. I cried and cried. The boys said "Dad, I don't think she likes it!"


5. What is your favorite feature of his? His brown eyes.


6. What is your favorite quality of his? He always tells me "Don't sweat the small stuff".


7. What is his nickname for me? Cozy. It is because his little brother went to school with a girl named Cozette and he could never remember my name so he called my Cozy. The name just stuck! His family used to always call him Rudy, nick names are very common in his family. I've shortened his nickname to "Rude" a few times and the kids have often questioned why I call dad rude.


8. What is his favorite food? Anything that is meat and potatoes, a good steak!


9. What is his favorite sport? No particular favorite. He just watches them all!


10. What is a hidden talent he has? He can snore the ABC's. KIDDING! Actually he has beautiful handwriting.


11. What is his favorite type of music? Country but he occasionally likes to listen to some hard rock.


12. What is something you admire most about him? He is VERY patriotic.


13. Do you think he will read this? He might. He occasionally reads the blog.

Changing of Seasons

I almost hated to change my blog background to one of Fall, but it is really starting to feel like Fall. It's getting colder at night and the kids definitely need a jacket when they leave for school. It is getting darker sooner and the days seem to be getting shorter. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE Fall, but I'm hesitant to give up Summer, maybe because it seemed SO short this year.

Autumn ( ot-em )1. the season also known as fall; coming between summer and winter 2. including the months of September, October, and November 3. characterized by the changing leaves, the return of school and a time of gratitude.

Harvest ( har*vist ) 1. the time at which ripened crops are fathered 2. the act of collecting the season's crop 3. the fruits of one's labor

"I'm in a Tank"

One disadvantate of working for the police department is hearing the radio. Friday afternoon school was let out early because of homecoming. Brodie stopped by after school to ask if he could ride his bike out to watch friends playing in the varsity soccer game. He was trying to decide between watching his friends or going to the parade. A little later I heard a call of a vehicle/bicycle accident near where Brodie was going. Whenever I hear those type of calls I stop and think where everyone in my family is at. So I called Brodie on his cell phone, just to make sure he was okay. When I asked him where he was at he said "I'm in a Tank". Okay, well that sounds a lot safer?!? He was riding in a tank for the homecoming parade. I grabbed one of the department cameras and went out to take a picture. And as always my photography is WONDERFUL?!? I wasn't sure how to run this camera to make matters worse!! He's the one in the white t-shirt in the tank.

Remembering September 11

If I Knew

Tomorrow is the anniversary of September 11. I remember reading this poem after that day and it made me more mindful to make the most of each day. But then I get busy again and forget what this poem reminds me of. I came across it the other day and it reminded me again of how important it is to take advantage of each day.

If I Knew

If I knew it would be the last time

That I'd see you fall asleep,

I would tuck you in more tightly

And pray the Lord, your soul to keep.

If I knew it would be the last time

That I see you walk out the door,

I would give you a hug and kiss

And call you back for one more.

If I knew it would be the last time

I'd hear your voice lifted up in praise,

I would video tape each action and word,

So I could play them back day after day.

If I knew it would be the last time,

I could spare an extra minute

To stop and say "I love you,"

Instead of assuming you would know I do.

If I knew it would be the last time

I would be there to share your day,

Well I'm sure you'll have so many more,

So I can let just this one slip away.

For surely there's always tomorrow

To make up for an oversight,

And we always get a second chance

To make everything just right.

There will always be another day

To say "I love you,"

And certainly there's another chance

To say our "Anything I can do?"

But just in case I might be wrong,

And today is all I get,

I'd like to say how much I love you

And I hope we never forget.

Tomorrow is not promised to anyone,

Young or old alike,

And today may be the last chance

You get to hold your loved one tight.

So if you're waiting for tomorrow,

Why not do it today?

For if tomorrow never comes,

You'll surely regret the day,

That you didn't take that extra time

For a smile, a hug, or a kiss

And you were too busy to grant someone,

What turned out to be their one last wish.

So hold your loved ones close today,

And whisper in their ear,

Tell them how much you love them

And that you'll always hold them dear

Take time to say "I'm sorry,"

"Please forgive me," "Thank you," or "It's okay."

And if tomorrow never comes,

You'll have no regrets about today.

Author Unknown

Patiently Waiting for Playground

Last school year the Parent Teacher Organization was working on raising money to install a new playground at Harleigh's school. One of the projects was selling pizzas. Harleigh worked so hard selling pizzas. Like a little businesswoman she called her Aunts and Uncles and Grandparents. She convinced them to purchase pizzas and cookie dough. She sold the most in her class and won a Webkin. Darn those Webkins, but that is a whole other subject! Anyhow she was SO excited that they were going to get a new playground at the school. All summer long she has been checking on their progress and would make me drive past the school quite frequently. The day before school was to start and there was STILL no new playground she was a LITTLE upset! She said that she didn't care if the weather was hot they should have finished it. When she went to school she said she was going to find out about the playground. Nothing like a determined six year old! That night she came home and said that the principal had explained that there was a problem and the people were not able to get it installed but would be installing it soon. She seemed to be content with his explanation. We have still kept up on the progress of the playground and she is happy to report that they are almost finished. She wanted to take a picture of the progress for the blog.

Hopefully by next week they will be playing on the playground! At least for Harleigh's sake!!

Ice Cream & Awards

Saturday night the Civil Air Patrol had an ice cream social to give out some awards to the cadets. I was actually able to get Brodie to pose for a picture. The only bad thing was that the individual pictures of Jayce and Brodie were for their ID cards, which they are all serious for, so when I tried to get my picture they STILL wouldn't smile for me. PPPPLLLLEASE!!

Poor Brodie worked at Craigo's Saturday. Right before he was scheduled to get off work he cut his finger so Todd took him to Community Care. Since it was so close to the knuckle they could not put in stitches. The just bandaged it up. Gee I don't think anyone will notice do you?

We managed to get him bandaged up and the boys dressed in their blues in time to make it to the museum for the ice cream social. If you've never been to the Legacy Flight Museum in Rexburg you should go. It is really neat inside. John Bagley has built the museum and has airplanes and memorabilia inside. The Civil Air Patrol meets there each week and then we are also able to have our parties, etc. there. It is kind of fun to see, if you like airplanes!

Ready For Dance!

Tuesday Harleigh started dance lessons. She was SO excited to go. I take my lunch break from work when she gets out of school so that I can hear about her day and then take her to Grandma's or to the babysitters before I go back to work. Usually I have to wait for her because she walks home with some friends and likes to socialize along the way. Tuesday morning I told her to hurry home so we could get ready for dance. Boy did she ever hurry, she beat me home that day and scolded me for being late! I think she ran the whole way so she could get ready to go to dance. She's excited for another year of dance. She jabbered the whole way to dance about school and who I thought would be in her dance class. Then she jabbered the whole way home from dance about dance and all the new and old friends in her dance class. It is so fun to hear her excitement for everything that she experiences!

Labor Day!

Labor Day is the first Monday of September and has been called the "workingman's holiday". Okay but for me it was a working holiday. With the day off from work I tried to catch up around the house with laundry and cleaning. The weather was yucky so I didn't feel too guilty that we weren't out doing something fun or that I should have been doing yard work! The kids were actually pretty good to help me. Thank goodness for ....

Jon and Kate Plus Eight! There was a marathon on in the afternoon so once Harleigh lost all interest in helping with the cleaning she was able to watch the marathon and it kept her BUSY! YEAH!! Well back to the work week. Thank goodness. I can rest up from my working holiday.